Monday, 15 June 2009

ISLAMABAD: Lifting heavy burdens for a long time or distance isn't good for anyone, least of all children.

A recent study found that half of the schoolchildren had pain in the back or shoulders. The researchers also found that children in lower grades carried heavier bags, a news TV reported.

Carrying a heavy bag on the back causes forward leaning and bad posture, which can lead to improper weight bearing on the spine, and pains and aches in the back and shoulders.

Carrying a backpack weighing 15% of body weight makes a child or adolescent unable to maintain proper standing posture. Children could get into bad habits like poor posture and slouching. Forward bending at the back (also called kyphotic posture) makes the work of breathing harder.

Children carrying bags weighing more than 10% of their body weight have been found to have poorer lung function.

Children who use one strap bags (which put weight on one shoulder only) have particular problems. These bags cause sideways deviation of the spine (scoliosis) because of the asymmetric weight distribution, and this can cause long lasting back aches and damage.

The bag should not be more than 10% of the child's own weight. A child weighing 30 Kg should not carry more than 3 Kg on his back.

The child should always use both straps of the school bag, slinging the bag over one shoulder causes spine damage.

How heavy Is Your Child's School bag?

Welcome To Our Blog On School Bags

We are looking to highlight the dangers of over loaded and badly designed school bags. We are looking for input and feedback from parents, teachers and professionals. We will also keep you informed with the latest press articles covering this topic